Supplement to A/N: This is the final piece of the Acceptance trilogy. I am writing a
parallel Yugi x Atem series, and am
considering doing a short Jou x Mai piece.

O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O

Reconcile

"Should it still hurt this bad?"

Amethyst eyes looked up from the textbook they had been focused on to regard the owner's
silver-haired roommate. "I honestly
don't know, Ryou-kun. I just know that it does," Yugi replied softly, his voice
holding an undercurrent of deep pain.

Over the last three years the two hikari had grown close and had become roommates after
high school. They even attended the
same university. The two hikari understood the other's pain, both having experienced
that same joy of being reunited with the
missing half of their souls and the sorrow of losing them shortly after.

It wasn't fair.

"This CAN'T be right!" Ryou growled, clenching his fists. "How are we
supposed to protect the balance when WE aren't
balanced anymore?!"

Yugi shook his head, he'd asked that question himself many times before. Every time he
used his powers(1), he could feel the
shadows pulling at him. He and Ryou were light without darkness. Something the shadows
craved.

Sighing in frustration, Ryou flopped onto his bed and glared at the ceiling as though it
were at fault.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

In retrospect, Ryou thought he and Yugi had been fools.

About a week after their conversation, Ryou had been writing a letter to Malik when
inspiration struck. If even the smallest
possibility existed that their yamis could be returned to them, the Ishtars would be able
to find it.

So he'd asked.

His reply from Malik had been both encouraging and insulting at the same time. "Of
course there's a spell. We've been
waiting for you two idiots to get your act together and ask us!"

The Ishtars had simply assumed that the two hikari had needed the time to discover their
true feelings and establish
independence from their yami.

Well, they had needed it. But the first year was MORE than sufficient.

The spell was simple enough. Just a series of incantations to summon and shape the magic
necessary. However, it required the
blessing of a pharaoh. The hard part would be locating Atem's father and asking for his
blessing, as Atem could not bless
himself and no other pharaoh would care.

Now Ryou, Yugi, and all their friends were headed for the ruined temple below Kul Elna(2).
Even the Kaiba brothers had joined
them in their venture. But while all their friends knew they were bringing back Atem, only
Yugi and the Ishtars knew about
Bakhura(3).

He didn't want them to worry about it.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

"What of you, little thief? Will you take your yami back?"

Ryou stared at the glowing Sennen item before him as the Pharaoh addressed him.
"Sennen ring is yours, Bakura Ryou. Just as
it was in your former life."

"Former life?" the teen echoed, still suffering from mild shock over having the
Sennen Ring appear before him.

Akunamanon nodded, "You truly were the Thief King of Khemet(4), but before your dark
half was sealed, he had become tainted
by the power of Zork Necrophadius. Now that Zork has been defeated, the taint is gone and
I can restore your missing half to you."

"But what if he tries to steal the items again? Or kill my friends?" Ryou's
voice was pained yet filled with longing and
conflict. No matter how much he wanted his yami back, he would not put his friends in
danger again.

"The power he wished to harness is gone, he has no reason to try again."

"What about my friends?"

"Before, when he harmed them, did it make you unhappy?"

"H-Hai."

"Then know this reborn child of Kul Elna, without Zork's influence your yami will
feel your pain as though it was his own,
as you will feel his. He will become the dark guardian he should have been from the day
you received the Ring."

Ryou closed his eyes, his head down in thought. So many risks . . . yet this was the
reason he'd come . . . Raising doe brown
eyes to the former Pharaoh, Bakura Ryou plucked the Ring from where it floated before him.
"What do I need to do?" he asked,
disregarding the fearful cries of his friends.

"Hold the Ring to your chest and call to him with your heart."

Closing his eyes, Ryou did as he was told, /Yami . . . come home/

:: . . -kari . .::

Ryou's eyes widened, was that . . ? /Yami?/ Tentatively.

The ring flared in response, pointed spikes chiming wildly together as a bright flash
filled the room . . .

::I'm home, yadonushi.::

Blinking his eyes fiercely to clear them, Ryou stifled a gasp as the link between he and
his other snapped fully into place.
When his vision cleared, the silver-haired teen found himself staring at a deeply-tanned
chest. Fascinated, Ryou let his
eyes rove over his yami's muscular body. At Bakhura's amused chuckle, red rushed to his
cheeks as he shifted his gaze up
to see his yami's face. Gasping in awe, the silver-haired teen got his first look at his
yami's true face. Shoulder-length,
silver hair, lavender eyes, and a scar that gave him a more roguish appearance.

'Wow.'

Giving his wide-eyed hikari what he hoped was a reassuring smile, Bakhura initiated the
first touch. Reaching out and
brushing his knuckles along the curve of Ryou's cheek, marveling at the softness of his
skin. Ryou remained perfectly still
throughout Bakhura's "petting". The gentle teen still didn't know what to do.
Wanting nothing more than to throw his arms
around the darkness, yet afraid of his others reaction if he did. He could still sense his
other's darkness and knew
instinctively that the former spirit could and would kill if he wished. But that same
instinct told him that the Thief King
would never harm him or those he cared for.

Sensing his hikari's thoughts, Bakhura smirked at the teen, effectively scaring the hell
out of him and everyone else. That
smile never meant anything good. Before anyone could even think to say anything, the thief
had his light slung over his
shoulder in a fireman's carry and was casually strolling for the exit, chuckling at the
sound the teen had made. He hadn't
known his hikari could squeak.

Ryou on the other hand, was completely mortified and trying desperately to hide behind his
own hair.

"Oi! Where are you taking Ryou!"

Bakhura smirked back at the group, "Back to his room at the inn you're staying at.
There's no reason for us to remain in this
damn tomb any longer."

"You can't just walk across the desert without-"

The dark thief raised an eyebrow, "Who said I was walking?"

Shadow magic swirled around the pair, materializing into the form of Bakhura and Ryou's
ka, Diabound. "Ikuzo!" the thief
commanded, smacking his light's behind playfully. Ryou squalled indignantly, but any
comments he may have made were lost to
the group as the yami and hikari vanished.

There was a moment of awkward silence before Jou ventured a question, "Ryou-kun's not
in any danger, is he?"

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Humming along with the radio, Ryou danced slowly to the beat, enjoying this rare moment of
peace. Between school and two
high-maintenance yamis, it was rare the two hikari had any quiet time that wasn't
dedicated to homework. Both Bakhura and Atem
had an incredible knack for causing trouble, whether it was on purpose or not, especially
regarding modern appliances. Oh, they'd
both mastered the television fast enough, but kitchen appliances and power tools seemed to
have it out for the two spirits. Ryou had
long since lost count of how many microwaves the duo had destroyed. But when it all
came down to it, Ryou wouldn't have things
any other way. Bakhura was back and that's all that mattered to him.

Ryou nearly jumped out of his skin, as warm arms wrapped around him from behind.
::Having fun, hikari?::

/Bakhura! Are you trying to scare me to
death?!/

::Of course not, hikari. Where would the
fun in that be?:: the thief purred, pulling Ryou snug against his chest to nuzzle his
throat. ::I
have MUCH more enjoyable plans for you.::

Smiling, Ryou turned in his embrace, wrapping his
arms around his dark half. /Mmm, care to enlighten me?/

Chuckling mentally, Bakhura pressed his lips to
Ryou's, ::Let me show you instead.::

Tightening his arms around his dark, the
silver-haired teen intensified their kiss. /I can't wait./

2/18/05

O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O

1 - Just a little theory here. If Yugi and Ryou are the reincarnations of Atem and
Bakhura, then they would have the same
inherit abilities. Bakhura didn't need the Ring to summon his ka, it just increased his
power. (Going by the manga, he could summon
Diabound at will.) So even though they don't have their items anymore the two teens
still have access to their power.

2 - This would be the actual name of Bakhura's village. "Kuru Eruna" is
the romaji version. Check out the March issue of Shonen
Jump to see. (They've got Malik's name wrong though. Correct me if I'm wrong,
but "Marik" isn't arabic. Feh.)

3 - Yup, did this on purpose. Gave his name an
Arabic twist.

4 - Ancient Egyptian name for Egypt.

O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O

Disclaimer: Here we go. Yu-Gi-Oh and all it's characters are the property of Kazuki
Takahashi, Shueisha, Konami, Toei, and
unfortunately, 4 Kids Entertainment. I'm not making any money off of this, I'm just having
fun. Suing me would be largely
pointless as I am just a poor college student that works for the school system.